Join us » Omari! at their national championship celebration

In the latest Burning Questions,?Texas Rangers new addition Carlos Beltran says he is prepared for anything, just dont ask him what happened when you already know the answer.Who was your favorite player growing up? Beltran:?Bernie Williams. He was a centerfielder and that was the position I played when I was growing up, before I signed as a professional. That was my position and he was one of the guys from Puerto Rico. I had the opportunity to play a little bit of winter ball with him when I was 18. That was a great experience. I grew up hitting righty, but I was thinking of becoming a switch-hitter. So he was a guy that I got the opportunity to watch and I was able to learn a lot from him. I didnt become a switch-hitter until I was a professional in single-A.Who is your favorite player to watch today (not a teammate)? Beltran:?Mike Trout. I like to watch him play. Hes very dynamic. Plays good defense, also a power guy. He can impact the game on the base paths, also. That was my game when I first came up to the big-leagues -- try to get on base, try to steal bases and try to play defense in centerfield.Who is your most underrated teammate? Beltran:?Mitch Moreland. Hes a good defender. He can impact the game offensively. Sometimes players fly under the radar, and hes one of those guys.Whats the most annoying question you are asked by the media?Beltran:?Honestly speaking, Im prepared for anything. But lets say something happened on the field, like maybe you dont get a good read, or maybe you dont come through, and they ask you, What happened? Well, you already saw what happened, so how do you want me to describe it? But I guess its part of the process.One rule you would change? Beltran:?Its gotta be the All-Star Game rule. Normally the fans choose the players they want to see, but I believe the manager should be the one making the lineup. Let the fans be in charge of choosing the players, but let the manager get to choose who starts.Who is ultimately responsible for policing the game? Players, manager, umpires, league? Beltran:?I would say its the league. Every organization is going to have their rules that you gotta follow, but the league is the one thats making sure that everything is looking professional.How big of a problem are PEDs in todays game? Beltran:?Players are more aware that suspensions are very strict these days. Theyre taking notice of that. They dont want to look bad. If this was back in the day, I would say it was a problem. There wasnt a rule implemented. Right now, with all the tests that we get, I think its good that baseball is headed to that direction. No doubt its better than it used to be. But I believe theres always room to improve.What is something that people dont know about you or have wrong about you?Beltran:?I dont really show a lot of emotions on the field. Thats who I am as a ballplayer, so people think that Im super super serious, but I like to have fun. But my fun is super-boring. Being with the family is my pastime. Every time I get the opportunity to be with my actual family, or my family back home in Puerto Rico, I like doing barbecues at the house. I make sure everybody comes, and I make sure they have fun. Cheap Football Jerseys .Y. -- Knicks coach Mike Woodson said Wednesday that J. Stitched Jerseys . Thousands of Southern California fans enveloped the Trojans to celebrate an improbable win secured by an interim coach, an inconsistent kicker and a thin defence that wouldnt break. http://www.nflchinacheapjerseysstore.us.com/ . The Dane followed up his first European Tour title last weekend with eight birdies and just a single dropped shot on Thursday for a one-stroke advantage over South Africas Allan Versfeld and Portugals Ricardo Santos. Cheap Football Jerseys Authentic . Perhaps Carroll was so prepared for a break because he believes there is very little the Seattle Seahawks need heading into the off-season. "I dont see anything that we need to add. We just have to get better," Carroll said. Cheap Jerseys Free Shipping . Robredo, ranked No. 16, bounced back from an upset loss to Leonardo Mayer in the second round of the Royal Guard Open in Chile last week to down Carreno Busta in 1 hour, 25 minutes. On a day filled mostly with qualifying matches, fifth-seeded Marcel Granollers of Spain also entered the second with a 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 win over Aljaz Bedene of Slovenia, while Guido Pella of Argentina defeated Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain 7-6 (6), 6-4 to advance. VILLANOVA, Pa. -- Villanova slipped on the national championship rings, raised the national championship banner and hit the road on a victory circuit that had almost as many stops as a Wiz Khalifa summer tour.Khalifa even made a cameo appearance at Villanova as part of a championship celebration. The Wildcats shared laughs with President Barack Obama. Rollie Massimino danced at the title party.The Wildcats were feted with parades and presentations, first pitches and first pucks, and ordinary Big East players morphed into overnight college basketball sensations.Villanova has basked in the spotlight for seven months after beating North Carolina in one of the NCAA Tournaments all-time greatest games. Its now time for the Wildcats to try to defend -- defend? -- the championship.Nobody can take the ring off our fingers, 6-foot-5 swingman Josh Hart said. Were not defending nothing. Were a team that can make a deep run in March.Again the Big East favorites and ranked fourth in the AP preseason Top 25 , the Wildcats should be on the short list of teams to beat for a championship. They went 31 years between winning it all. Theyd like to shorten the next gap to one year.Led by Hart and title game star Kris Jenkins, the Wildcats are in prime position to become the first team to go back to back since Florida in 2006 and 2007.Just cutting down that net again would be great, Hart said.The Wildcats wouldnt have to search far to find a ladder. They kept the one they used in Houston to snip the nets after they beat the Tar Heels on Jenkins buzzer-beating 3-pointer.Hart, the Big Easts preseason player of the year, will begin his senior season on The Associated Press preseason All-America team . Hart averaged 15.5 points and 6.8 rebounds last season for the Wildcats and considered turning pro.He wants two-time national champ stamped on his bio for next years NBA draft.A couple of people told me that when they were going through the draft process, they were like, `It was a storybook ending, and you can basically ride off into the sunset, Hart said. Riding off into the sunset in that way this year would be crazy.Coach Jay Wright, who is 354-157 with two Final Fours in 15 seasons at Villanova, said a national title has only boosted the Wildcats confidence.Thats not something they lose. That confidence is inside them, he said. That experience is inside them. Youre never going to take that away. Usually its harder to control your ego than it is to pump someebody up.ddddddddddddThe challenge is really our ego and staying humble and hungry and getting better.Get better?That could be scary for the rest of the Big East. The three-time defending conference champs have improved their record in the league (16-2 each of the last three years) and a top-three seed in the NCAA Tournament is usually a mere formality.Here are some of the challenges ahead for the reigning national champs:FREE OMARIOmari Spellman, a 6-foot-8 highly recruited forward, was expected to become Villanovas big man in the frontcourt this season. The NCAA declared the freshman academically ineligible for this season because Spellman did not complete his initial eligibility requirements in time.That leaves more minutes for Darryl Reynolds and freshmen Tim Delaney and Dylan Painter.But Spellman would have carried a load left by Daniel Ochefus absence and made the Wildcats more potent inside. The Villanova fans chanted Free Omari! at their national championship celebration. Hell be free -- just not until next season.WONT YOU STAYSpellman was an expected stud and sophomore guard Jalen Brunson had one-and-done potential until he eased into his team-first role in the starting lineup.Wright has never had a one-and-done player leave for the NBA and the Wildcats have made tournament runs on the strength of four-year players like Ochefu, now with the Washington Wizards, and point guard Ryan Arcidiacono.Wright said that approach wont change as champs.Were trying to find kids that appreciate what Villanova is all about, he said. People say it must have helped you in recruiting. Were recruiting the same guys. Were trying to find the best guys for Villanova that can make it to the NBA, not the best guys for the NBA.WRIGHT WAYWright said he had nothing more than simple, casual conversations with NBA team executives about jobs open at the next level. Wright, who has dealt with job offer rumors for a decade, said he does not have NBA aspirations.I dont, he said. Would I like to coach in the NBA? Would I like the challenge? Yeah. But I dont want to give this up. Youve got to give this up to do it. I dont want to give it up. If I ended my career and I never got to coach in the NBA, Id be far more happier saying I got to coach at Villanova for a long time.---More AP college basketball: http://collegebasketball.ap.org ' ' '